Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak continued to sound an optimistic tone for keeping Howard when he met with reporters after the draft on Thursday.

“I don’t think anything dramatic is going to take place on June 30 at 9:01 [p.m. PT] regarding Dwight. My understanding is there are several other teams that have great interest and he’s going to have a process that I understand to be pretty deliberate that he’s going to go through, and we’ll be involved in that process and we’ll see how it plays out.”

ESPNLosAngeles.com quoted a source close to Howard that the center expects to be ready to choose his team as soon as the NBA’s moratorium on new business is lifted July 10.

On Thursday, ESPN’s Chris Broussard reported that Howard was unlikely to return to the Lakers and would focus on the Rockets and Mavericks.